Sunday, April 27, 2008

long weekend in food

A great, long weekend in this part of the world, with as much time as possible spent in the sun, reading and lazing under the grapevine. There has been some cooking and a little eating out but thought I’d share what I've done with some of that shopping.

Thursday – roasted the snapper (actually following a tried and true recipe from a cook book). First you whiz up some fresh coriander, a little chilli, garlic and oil to make a marinade/paste to smear over the whole fish. Half an hour later you throw it into a very hot (240c) oven surrounded by sliced potatoes, tomatoes and green olives. The previously mentioned roasted green beans and brussels sprouts went well with it.

Friday while it was still warm and bright took the table out onto the deck and breakfasted on scrambled eggs. I diced the leftover potatoes from dinner and added them to the eggs along with a few dried tomatoes and fresh parsley.

Still outside, lunch was a mixture of salads accompanied by the cabbage rolls from the market. A simple, fresh rocket, cucumber and radish salad with a dressing of sherry vinegar, mustard and macadamia oil. A variation on this pumpkin and chickpea salad with the tahini dressing, adding some toasted pistachio nuts and baked cauliflower.

Friday night was dinner at the Kent Hotel, am a bit over the regular menu and fortunately there was a seafood special in a tomato “broth” (thicker than the term would suggest). It was spiked with tarragon and very tasty.

Saturday morning the weather began cooling down so I started the day with porridge, slow cooked with dried cranberries, grated apple and some ground nutmeg finished with a drizzle of maple syrup. We went across town to see a couple of exhibitions and grabbed a late lunch at Black Ruby to line our stomachs before the annual sherry tastings at Rathdowne Cellars. Although I like Black Ruby, there is often something not quite right about the flavour combinations in of some of the dishes. I had a go at a vegan, gluten-free lunch item (because any mainstream restaurant that goes out of the way to provide these kind of options needs to be supported in my book) but even before the first bite I could see the black bean sausages were desiccated beyond hope. The vegan sweet potato mash was moist and bland, though filling. The combination just lacked any zing.

Fortunately there was zing aplenty across the road at Rathdowne Cellars. The throng was working its way through the 9 or so sherries on offer, ranging from a salty, bone dry manzanilla to a sweet end of the line (which are way beyond my palate).

For dinner, our favourite green leafy of the season – silverbeet, was finely sliced and cooked with onion, garlic, black pepper and olive oil then mixed with tuna and beaten egg and layered in filo pastry spanakopita style.

Sunday – I’m retiring from the kitchen, though am tempted to make an apple strudel with the leftover pastry. Though that romanesco looks good, what should I do with it?